China Juicy Fruit's Biggest Producer.

In Japan, this large, awkwardly shaped fruit doesn't fit neatly on refrigerator shelves so farmers "squared off" the crop by inserting the growing melons into square, tempered-glass cases. As the melons grow they take on the same dimensions as the crate, which has the same dimensions as Japanese refrigerator shelves.

Japanese consumers fork over $82 per melon for the privilege of easy storage. Even regular-shaped watermelons are expensive in Japan, costing $15 to $25 each. They are considered so desirable that in both Japan and China they have become popular hostess gifts.

China is the biggest producer of watermelons, with 38.5 billion pounds. Turkey has 7.7 billion pounds, and Iran 5.3 billion pounds. The United States at 4 billion pounds.

Square Melons

The Japanese have squared off watermelons, but American producers have made some adjustments of their own. Today you can buy watermelons with or without stripes, with or without seeds and in several colors -- red, pink, yellow and orange -- all without diminishing flavor or sweetness.

The original large, oval-shaped watermelon has been downsized, making it easier to carry, more suitable for home refrigerators and smaller families. Dimensions go from basketball size (usually the seedless variety) to the ones that win prizes, like the record watermelon grown in Tennessee that came to 262 pounds.

This ruby-red fruit, product of a trailing vine that's related to cantaloupe and honeydew and more distantly to cucumbers, pumpkins and squash, seems so typically American that it's hard to believe it actually originated in the Kalahari Desert of Africa. It was a precious source of water for Arab traders.

First Harvest

The first recorded harvest goes back nearly 5,000 years and is depicted in the art and hieroglyphics on the walls of ancient Egyptian pyramids. It was one of the foods placed in tombs to fortify the royal dead on their journey to the nether world. From Africa, it made its way to China and India, and in the 13th century the Moors introduced it to southern Europe.

In the United States, watermelons were cultivated in gardens as early as 1629, having traveled across the waters with black slaves who landed on the shores of Charleston in the early 1600s.

Watermelons were valuable aboard crowded ships. There are no wasted parts. Americans don't even throw out the rind. It makes excellent sweet pickles, as noted in American Cookery, the first cookbook published in the United States in 1796, which contained a recipe for watermelon pickles.

Creative Chinese cooks provide another interesting interpretation. They trim the rind, cut the white part into thin strips, toss it with strips of red chili peppers, sugar and sesame oil.

But no matter how fastidious the palate, it's the sweet flesh that is savored all over the world. It's hard to imagine civilization without its refreshing, pleasantly flavored accents.

In Morocco, slices are sprinkled with chopped fresh mint leaves and a squeeze of lime. Egyptians enjoy the contrasting flavors of watermelon slices with feta cheese, while the Greeks team it with halloumi cheese and add the crunch of toasted pine nuts.

Watermelon in Thailand is an essential part of nearly every fruit platter. The juice is also extracted and sold as a beverage. The Russians also drink it after master brewers created watermelon beer, a unique product with rather limited potential elsewhere.

And then there are those pesky, smooth, flat, black, mottled and white seeds. People have their own way of dealing with them. Some Americans have made history with seed spitting -- the world record stands at 66 feet and 11 inches. But in pragmatic Asian and Middle Eastern cultures, the black, flat seeds, roasted and salted, top the snack list. Ground hulled watermelon seeds help thicken one of Nigeria's national dishes, egusi soup, composed of shellfish, goat meat or beef, tomatoes and spinach.

For years, we've been told that watermelon is a nutritional bargain, an ideal health food with no fat, no cholesterol, high in fiber and vitamins A and C. Current research indicates that antioxidants help prevent certain forms of cancer, and one such antioxidant is lycopene, found in watermelons and tomatoes.

Universal appeal

According to Dr. Barbara Levine, co-director of the human nutrition program at Rockefeller University, "This is great news for consumers. Watermelon is a food that almost everyone likes. The fact that it's good for you is a bonus."